Kilmar Abrego Garcia immigrated illegally to the United States as a teenager. He lived in Maryland for years with his American wife and child. In 2019, an immigration judge ruled against his deportation to El Salvador. The judge cited dangers from a gang that threatened his family.
However authorities mistakenly deported Abrego Garcia to El Salvador last year. Public pressure and a court order prompted the Trump administration to bring him back in June. Officials secured an indictment against him for human smuggling in Tennessee. Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Government’s Deportation Efforts
Trump officials declared that Abrego Garcia could not stay in the United States. They planned to deport him to African countries. These included Uganda, Eswatini, Ghana, and Liberia.
Moreover the government detained him again upon his return. A court later ruled this initial detention unlawful. Abrego Garcia’s attorneys sought to prevent further re-detention multiple times.
Judge’s Ruling and Statements
Paula Xinis, the U.S. District Judge in Maryland, issued a ruling on Tuesday. She determined that Immigration and Customs Enforcement could not re-detain Abrego Garcia. The 90-day detention period had expired, and no viable deportation plan existed.
The government “made one empty threat after another to remove him to countries in Africa with no real chance of success,” Xinis wrote in her order. Additionally, she concluded, “there is no ‘good reason to believe’ removal is likely in the reasonably foreseeable future.”